Taco Rice Bake – an easy one-pan Mexican casserole. Ground beef, taco seasoning, rice, cream of chicken soup, Rotel diced tomatoes and green chiles, Ranch style beans, and cheese. We like to top the casserole with our favorite taco toppings – cheese, sour cream, jalapeños, and guacamole! Can make in advance and refrigerate or freeze for later. This was a great change to our usual taco night!!
Remember this recipe.
Pin this recipe to your favorite board now to remember it later!
Pin This RecipeEasy Ground Beef Mexican Casserole
Mexican food is one of my favorites. Chicken Legs doesn’t like to go out for Mexican food, so I make it a lot at home to get my fix. This Taco Rice Bake is a favorite at our house. It is super easy to make and tastes great! Taco meat, rice, beans, spicy tomatoes, and cheese – YUM! I love easy one-pan meals like this one! Top the casserole with your favorite taco toppings and prepare to be wowed!
How to Make Taco Rice Casserole
As I said, this casserole is super easy to make. Start with cooking some rice. While the rice is cooking make the taco meat. Mix together the taco meat, cooked rice, cream of chicken soup, onion, Ranch Style Beans, Rotel diced tomatoes and green chiles, and shredded cheese. Spread the mixture into a baking dish and pop it into the oven.
- Can I make this casserole in advance? Yes! You can assemble this casserole ahead of time and refrigerate it until ready to bake.
- Can I freeze this taco casserole? Yes! You can assemble this casserole and freeze it unbaked for later. To bake after freezing, thaw completely and bake as directed below.
- You can substitute ground turkey for ground beef.
- What are Ranch Style Beans? Ranch style beans are a brand/type of beans. It says “Ranch Style Beans” on the can. They are near the pinto and chili beans at the grocery store.
- I can’t find Ranch Style Beans. What can I use instead? If you can’t find Ranch Style Beans, you can substitute a can of chili beans or pinto beans.
- Use pinto beans or black beans and gluten-free cream of chicken soup for a gluten-free dish.
- This recipe uses a can of Rotel diced tomatoes and green chiles. If you are sensitive to heat, I suggest using a can of Mild Rotel in this casserole.
- I don’t like instant rice. What can I use instead? Feel free to substitute 4 cups of your favorite cooked rice – white, brown, jasmine, basmati will all work fine.
- Can use any cheese you prefer. Mexican cheese blend, pepper jack cheese, Monterey Jack, Colby would all be delicious.
What to Serve with Taco Rice Bake
This taco casserole was a huge hit at our house. We like to top the casserole with our favorite taco toppings – cheese, sour cream, jalapeños, and guacamole! This was a great change to our usual taco night! You don’t need a lot of side dishes to go with this casserole. We usually have a salad or a corn muffin. Here are a few of our favorite recipes from the blog that go great with this easy Mexican casserole:
Mexican Chopped Salad
Mexican Chopped Salad – the perfect side to all of your favorite Mexican recipes! Lettuce, corn, black beans, tomatoes, avocados,…
Jalapeno Ranch Dip
Jalapeno Ranch Dip – so simple and tastes better than Chuy’s! I made this for a party and it was…
Superior Grill Salsa
Superior Grill Salsa – the salsa recipe from my favorite Mexican restaurant. So easy & tastes great. Tomatoes, pickled jalapenos,…
Texas Toast Cornbread (Grilled Cornbread)
Texas Toast Cornbread – tastes just like the cornbread from your favorite BBQ Joint! Flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, eggs,…
Taco Rice Bake
Ingredients:
- 2 cups instant white rice
- 2 cups water
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 (15-oz) can Ranch Style beans
- 1 (10-oz) can Ro-tel tomatoes
- 2 tsp dried minced onion flakes
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
- 1 (1-oz) package taco seasoning
- 1 (10.5-oz) can cream of chicken soup
- ½ cup water
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly spray a 9×13-inch pan with cooking spray.
- In a large skillet, brown meat and drain off fat. Stir in beans, tomatoes, onion flakes, taco seasoning, soup and ½ cup water. Simmer over medium-low heat until everything is well combined and heated through. Remove from heat.
- In a pot, bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Add instant rice. Cover and remove from heat. Let rice sit for 5 minutes, until all water is absorbed.
- Stir cooked rice and 1 cup of cheddar cheese into beef mixture. Pour into prepared 9×13-inch pan. Top with remaining 1 cup of cheddar cheese.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. Top with your favorite taco toppings.
Notes:
What are Ranch Style Beans? Ranch style beans are a brand/type of beans. It says “Ranch Style Beans” on the can. They are near the pinto and chili beans at the grocery store.
If you can’t find Ranch Style Beans, you can substitute a can of chili beans or pinto beans.
Use pinto beans or black beans and gluten-free cream of chicken soup for a gluten-free dish.
This recipe uses a can of Rotel diced tomatoes and green chiles. If you are sensitive to heat, I suggest using a can of Mild Rotel in this casserole.
Feel free to substitute 4 cups of your favorite cooked rice – white, brown, jasmine, basmati will all work fine.
Can use any cheese you prefer. Mexican cheese blend, pepper jack cheese, Monterey Jack, Colby would all be delicious.Steph
Remember this recipe.
Pin this recipe to your favorite board now to remember it later!
Pin This Recipe
This is one of the best rice bake I have ever made. I did however switch up a few things. Instead of beef or Turkey, I used ground pork. It called for green chilies and tomato’s. I myself don’t care hot hot spicy foods and to much so I cut out the tomato’s and chilies. I added dark red kidney and light red kidney beans instead of the ones recommended. It also called for minced onion flakes I didn’t have that so I used about a teaspoon sized amount of onion powder. I didn’t have shredded cheese on hand but I had a can of cheese and I mixed that into my meat mixture and stirred it until melted. But this was a very flavorful and a nice change to a quick and easy meal. I will be sending this recipe to my family and friends. This was a very good dish
Do you drain the cans of tomatoes or beans?
No
You can also add a can of tamales to it and it is Delicious! Keep everything and cut tamales up after peeling the paper off and add to this recipe.I use Hormel Tamales ans Hormel chili ibsteadof ranch beans .
Love this recipe! To make it ahead of time, can I just cook it all on the pan the night before, store in the fridge and then put it in the oven the next day?
That should be just fine.
Thank you for this recipe! I first made this almost a year ago and it was great. I made it again tonight and again, GREAT! I use black beans and regular white rice (not instant). It is so good. This time I used hatch chili that was chillin in my freezer and basmati rice. I never add any water to the pan with the soup/seasoning/meat, etc. It turns out SO good! This would make a great dish if put into a crockpot and served with wedges of soft shell tacos.
I got confused and added 2 cups of water instead of 1/2 cup of water to the meat. Hope it still works right
Thinkin about making this tonight. I have a 1yr old rotel is a little to much for him. Think I'm going to substitute that for regular diced tomatoes.
I made this last night and it was a hit with my wife and daughter! Definitely on the keeper list! Thank you!
Hi Stephanie, I made this tonight, it was easy to make and tasted great. will be making this again, thanks for posting the recipe
Any substitute for ranch beans? Can't get them in Canada
Black Beans would be great
Do you suggest drain the ranch beans?
Fed 3 kids and 4 adults. We all loved it. I added a can of corn to stretch a bit.
This will be my new potluck go to.
Looks SO good!